OPERATIONAL PLAN FOR 2023 ADOPTED
On 14 June, the University Board adopted the Operational Plan for 2023 (UFV 2022/28). The operational plan lays out the tasks and budgets of the disciplinary domains and University-wide functions. The disciplinary domain boards and, where relevant, faculty boards then divide up their budget allocations among departments in their operational plans.
Overall timetable:
- 30 November: Deadline for disciplinary domain boards and faculty boards to adopt their operational plans for 2023.
- 14 December: University Board adopts changes in the Operational Plan for 2023, if necessary.
- December: The departments finalise their operational plans and budgets for 2023.
To strengthen long-term strategic planning, the operational plan covers the next three years. Decisions on resource allocation only apply to the next year, in this case 2023, since the government’s resource allocation decision is for one year at a time. Planning outlooks for 2024 and 2025 are also indicated.
Further information: Daniel.Gillberg@uu.se (Planning Director).
NEW POLICY FOR WORK ENVIRONMENT AND EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES
Acting on a proposal from the Vice-Chancellor, the University Board has decided to repeal the University’s work environment policy (UFV 2005/1757) and given the Vice-Chancellor a mandate to adopt a new policy for work environment and equal opportunities (UFV 2021/1473). The new policy will apply from 1 July 2022 and the old policy will be repealed the same day. The purpose of the new work environment policy is to describe the intended work environment at the University, outline how the work environment and equal opportunities will be managed to attain the goals, and explain the division of responsibilities for the work environment. The policy covers both employees and students.
Further information: Karin.Karlstrom@uu.se (HR Strategist).
ELECTORAL COLLEGE 2022–2025
Acting on a proposal from the Vice-Chancellor, the University Board has decided that the 36 members of the University’s Electoral College and consultative assembly for the period 15 October 2022 – 14 October 2025 will be selected by the new electoral assemblies (UFV 2022/1167). The electoral assemblies are responsible for elections to disciplinary domain and faculty boards. The members of the Electoral College are drawn from the faculties as follows: Faculty of Theology (1), Faculty of Law (1), Faculty of Arts (3), Faculty of Languages (2), Faculty of Social Sciences (5), Faculty of Educational Sciences (1), Faculty of Medicine (8), Faculty of Pharmacy (2) and Faculty of Science and Technology (13). The seats are divided between the disciplinary domains based on the number of full-time equivalent employees (FTEs) within the category of academically qualified individuals. In addition, the College has 11 members representing other employees and 18 representing students.
Further information: Linda.Lundberg@uu.se (Academy Secretary).
MEETING SCHEDULE FOR UNIVERSITY BOARD
At its meeting on 14 June, the University Board decided on the dates for meetings in 2023:
- 20 February
- 19–20 April
- 20 June
- 20 September
- 15–16 November
- 14 December
The University Board will meet on the following dates in autumn 2022:
• 21 September
• 25–26 October
• 14 December
POLITICAL PARTIES: RULES FOR ACCESS TO PREMISES
Parliamentary elections will be held in Sweden on Sunday 11 September. At the same time, there will be general elections to municipal councils and regional assemblies. Uppsala University receives enquiries before every election about access to premises for purposes of political information, for example. These days, the Vice-Chancellor does not take special decisions before each election. Instead, the Guidelines for granting access to and use of Uppsala University premises (UFV 2018:841) provide rules covering the situation:
- Uppsala University can grant use of its premises for political meetings to political parties that hold seats in the Swedish parliament (the Riksdag), Uppsala Regional Assembly, Uppsala Municipal Council or Gotland Regional Assembly.
- The political parties that hold seats in the Riksdag, Uppsala Regional Assembly, Uppsala Municipal Council or Gotland Regional Assembly can receive access to the University’s public spaces two weeks before the general elections after consultation with the relevant facilities manager concerning the dates and venues of election campaigns.
- For political organisations that do not hold seats in the Riksdag, Uppsala Regional Assembly, Uppsala Municipal Council or Gotland Regional Assembly, an assessment will be made on a case by case basis when use or access is requested. Organisations associated with violent extremism are not allowed access to the University’s premises.
Guidelines for granting access to and use of Uppsala University premises (pdf document in Swedish).
Further information: juravd@uadm.uu.se (Legal Affairs Division).
UNIVERSITY IT SERVICES: SEE THE RESULTS OF THE USER SURVEY
A user survey on IT at the University was carried out in March. A questionnaire was sent to all employees and other people engaged at Uppsala University. The questionnaire was sent to some 12,000 people and the response rate was 25 per cent. The survey was sent by University IT Services (UIT). The results are now available and the next stage of the process is to develop an action plan for continued dialogue across the University and measures for the further development of IT services.
CLIMATE EXPERTISE BOOST: UNIVERSITY TO COORDINATE OPEN ONLINE LEARNING
As part of the government’s investment in a climate expertise boost, nine higher education institutions are receiving funding to develop open online learning courses (MOOCs) to support the climate transition in society (news article in Swedish). The initiative is being coordinated nationally by Uppsala University and courses will start in 2022. The term ‘open online learning courses’ refers to free courses given on the internet and open to all, with no entry requirements. The acronym MOOC stands for Massive Open Online Course.
LOSS OF GROUND IN NEW WORLD RANKING
The international QS World University Rankings has released this year’s list of the world’s top universities. Uppsala University has slipped four places, from 124 to 128 (news article in Swedish). However, the University has improved its position in student-teacher ratio, international personnel and international students. Uppsala University comes in fourth place among Swedish institutions, behind KTH Royal Institute of Technology (89), Lund University (95) and Chalmers (125). All except KTH have dropped a few places compared with last year’s list.
ROYAL LUSTRE FOR MAJOR RESEARCH CONTRIBUTIONS
King Carl XVI Gustaf has conferred HM The King’s Medal on Hans Ellegren, Professor of Evolutionary Biology, and Lennart Elmevik, Professor Emeritus of Scandinavian Languages. Hans Ellegren receives HM The King’s Medal in the 8th size with the ribbon of the Order of the Seraphim in recognition of his “outstanding contributions to research in biology and the history of science”. Ellegren is Professor of Evolutionary Biology at the Department of Ecology and Genetics and currently Secretary General of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Lennart Elmevik receives HM The King’s Medal in the 8th size with the ribbon of the Order of the Seraphim in recognition of “significant contributions to linguistic research and Swedish academia”. Elmevik is Professor Emeritus of Scandinavian Languages at the Department of Scandinavian Languages.
---
Have a good summer. Management News will be back in August. ED.